Means for mounting copyholders on typewriter platforms



March 21, 1950 F H BLOQMSTRAN 2,501,257

MEANS FOR MOUNTING COPYHOLDERS' 0N TYPEWRITER PLATFORMS Filed May 7,1949 2 Sheets-Sheet l I f I VENTO W azzome s.

March 21, 1950 i F. H. BLOOMSTRAN 2,501,257

MEANS FOR MOUNTING COPYHOLDERS 0N TYPEWRITER PLATFORMS Filed May 7, 19492 Sheets-Sheet 2 aoi VENTO Patented Mar. 21, 1950 MEANS FOR MOUNTINGCOPYHOLDERS ON TYPEWRITER PLATFORMS Floydfiiflloomstran, Jamestown, N.72.,assignor' to Art Metal Construction-Company, Jamestown, N. Y.

Application May '7, 1949, Serial No. 915966- "This invention relates toimprovements in brackets or supports by means-of which copyholders maybe moun'ted-on typewriter platforms or similar supports.

"Secretarial :desks are commonly provided with platforms constitutingextensions .of the desks and to which typewriters or similar machinesmay the secured. When the typewriter is .not in use, such platform withthe typewriter mounted thereon may lbe swung or otherwise shifted intoipositionwithinaipedestal of the desk. Since it: is frequentlysdesirableto use copyholders in connection with theitypewriter'platforms of desksof :this type, :difiicultyhas heretofore been encountered in mountingthese copyholders on'the platforms for the reason that the platforms arenecessarily limited in their width, and furthermore, the copyholders .asnow commonly used are too :large to be swungwith the typewriter and itssupporting platform into an inoperative position within the pedestal ofthe desk.

(One of theobjects of this invention is to provide aibracket by means ofwhich 'a copyholder may readily be supported on a -typewriter platformof a .desk in such a manner that a copyholder together with .a partofthe. bracket can be quick- 1y :andeasily secured 'to or detached fromthe platform. Another object .is to provide brackets of improvedconstruction which comprises two members, one of which may bepermanently secured to the platform .andthe other of which has thecopyholder secured thereto rand is .releasably secured to the 'firstlbracketrmember. .A further object of this invention is to providebrackets 'of strong and..-rigid construction which support thecopyholder beyond :an edge of the platform. .Another object to provide--acopyholdersupporting bracket with apivotal mounting for the usuallever which :is usedfor vertically moving a part ,of the copyholder. Itis also an objectof this invention .to provide brackets'of this typewhich can be used without interfering with the usualpedestal door .of a.desk.

Other objects and advantages :will .be apparent from .thefollowingdescriptionofi one embodiment of the invention and the novelfeatures will .be particularly pointed out hereinafter in connectionwith the appendedolaims.

:In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of adesk having a typewriter platformarranged .in .its operative position and havingbrackets embodying thisinyention secured .thereto and supporting a. copylholder.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary elevation, partly in 11 Claims. (01. :-28)

section, approximately on the line 22, ;Fig. 1, showing in elevation thecopyholder brackets supporting a copyholder, a portion of the deskplatformbe'ing shown in section.

3 is a top" plan view of the brackets and ch -fragmentary view of thedesk platform and of the copyholder. I

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation thereof, on line 4-4, Fig-'3, showingone of thelorackets.

Fig.5 is a sectional elevation thereof, on line Fig. 3, showing theother bracket.

In 1,8 represents a portion of .a pedestal desk which is provided withaplatform it =mounted-on the desk in such a manner that it can be swunginto operative position as shown .in Fig. 1, and into an inoperativeposition in which the platform together .witha typewriter .or other.machineinounted thereon may be inserted 'intoand housed within thepedestal of the desk. The width-of these platforms is .SllCh that when atypewriter'is secured there-to, there .is usually not sufiicient'room tosupport a copyholder l 0 .on the platform. 1! represents the usual doorwhich closes the. pedestal of the :desk when the plat- -form at with .a.machine mounted thereon is housed within the pedestal.

1 .In order tosupport a CQDYholder on the platform-911 provide a ,pairof brackets t2 and I4 whichuare preferably made in two parts or memberswhich are readily separable. One .of these parts of each bracket is abase member l5 to which the other part or member of the 'bracket may bequicklyattachedor removed. The base members may be of :any suitableconstruction, those shown being of Z-shaped cross section, eachincluding a flange iii which may be suitably secured to the platform 9in any suitable manner, for example, by means of bolts l! or otherfastening means. Each of these base members also includes an upwardlyextending flange or leg .l-Bterminating at its upper edge in asubstantially horizontally extending flange it to which flange the othermember of the bracket may be releasablysecuredin any desired manner.

The other or removable members of the brackets are preferably-made ofsheet .metal bent or formed to include substantially flat horizontalportions .21 and 22. The portion 2! .of each bracket is formed vto lieface to face upon the horizontalfiange l-Q of the base member of thebracket. .The other portion 522 of the removable member of-thebracket-extends beyond theouter edgeof the platform 9 and the .base orfoot portions 23 of a copyholder may be suitably secured to thehorizontal portions 2.2 of the removable bracket members in any suitablemanner, for example, by means of bolts 24 or other fastening means whichextend through apertures in the foot portions of the copyholder and inthe horizontal parts 22 of the brackets. Consequently, the copyholdermay be more or less permanently secured to the removable parts ormembers of the brackets |2 and I4.

In order to firmly support the copyholder, the removable members of thebrackets are reinforced to render them rigid, and for this purpose, inthe particular construction illustrated, each removable member isprovided between the portions 2| and 22 thereof with a reinforcing part25, which in the construction shown is of channel or inverted U-shape.The portions 2|, 22 and 25 may be formed of a single piece of sheetmetal bent into the desired shape, or this part of the removable membermay be made of sep- I arate pieces secured together, for example, bywelding.

In some types of desks the door II for the desk pedestal extends at aconsiderable distance above the upper surface of the platform 9, and bymaking the reinforcing portion of channel shape, this reinforcingportion serves the further purpose of receiving or straddling the upperportion of a pedestal door of this type, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. Inthe particular construction shown in Fig. 1, a door is shown which doesnot extend materially above the upper flanges H! of the fixed bracketmembers, and this door, therefore, does not extend into the reinforcingchannel portions 25 of the brackets, and when used in connection withdesks having doors of this type, the channels 25 may be replaced withreinforcing members of othe shapes or forms. In order to preventrattling and damage to the finish of the upper portions of the doors,the inner surfaces of the channel portions 25 are preferably lined witha suitable felt or other cushioning material 21.

In order to support the copyholder in such a manner that it is mountedrigidly on the platform 9, it is also desirable to provide a reinforcingmember extending crosswise of the member or portion 25. For thispurpose, the horizontal portion 2| of each of the removable parts of thebrackets is provided with an upwardly extending flange 28, preferablyformed integral therewith, and a truss member an is also provided oneach bracket which straddles the reinforcing or channel member 25thereof. This truss member is rigidly secured to the upright flange 28,for example, by welding, and the outer portion of the truss member isalso rigidly secured to the horizontal supporting part 22, for example,by means of a flange 3| integral with the truss member 30, which may bewelded or otherwise secured to the horizontal supporting part 22. Ifdesired, the inner end of the truss member may also be provided with aflange o integral part 32 which may be welded or secured to the portion2| of the removable member of the bracket.

By means of the construction described, the truss member and the partsassociated therewith resist flexing of the removable member of thebracket in one direction, and the reinforcing member or chanel portion25 resists flexing in a direction transversely thereof, so that a strongand rigid bracket results which can be made of relatively light gagesheet metal. Consequently, the removable bracket member does not addmaterially to the weight of the copyholder to which it is secured.

Any suitable or desired quickly detachable connection may be providedbetween the two parts or members of each bracket. In the constructionillustrated, this is accomplished by means of a locking bolt 35 providedat one end thereof with a web or wing 36 for turning the bolt, and atthe other end thereof a locking pin 31. The bolt 35 extends looselythrough a hole in the horizontal portion 2| of the removable bracket andthe pin 31 is of such length as to prevent removal of the bolt throughthe hole in the part 2|. This pin 31, when the bolt 35 is turned in onedirection, cooperates with a suitable cam member, generally designatedas 40, secured to the lower surface of the horizontal flange |9 of thefixed member of the bracket for pressing the portion 2| into tightengagement with the horizontal flange I3. Fastening devices of this typeare well known and are, therefore, not herein described in detail. Anyother suitable quickly releasable fastening device may be provided ifdesired.

When it is desired to connect the removable member of the bracket to thefixed member, it is merely necessary to insert the end of the bolt 35carrying the pin 31 through an opening in the flange I9 into position toengage the cam member 40. By turning the bolt 35 by means of its handleportion 36 through slightly less than half a revolution, the pin 31 willengage the cam faces to draw the bolt 35 downwardly and thus press thepart 2| into engagement with the flange |3. Similarly somewhat less thana half turn in the opposite direction will release the bolt so that theremovable member of a bracket may be quickly detached from the flange 9of the fixed bracket member.

The two removable bracket members are similar in construction exceptthat the portion 22 of the left hand bracket i2 is longer in thedirection of the adjacent edge of the platform than the portion 22 ofthe right hand bracket l4, and consequently, the channel 25 of thebracket I2 is also considerably longer than the channel of the bracketM. This enables the brackets to be readily adapted for use withtypewriter housings or bases of various widths, since the base membersof the brackets are secured to the platform in such manner that the rearportion of the base or frame of the typewriter may extend between thebase members of the brackets. For this purpose, the portion 22 of theleft hand bracket is provided with additional pairs of apertures, asclearly shown in Fig. 3, through which the bolts 24 may pass when thebrackets are spaced farther apart to accommodate typewriters of greaterwidths.

The bracket part M on the right-hand side of the copyholder ispreferably provided with'a pair of upwardly extendin spaced ears or lugs42 which may be secured to or formed integral with the upstandingreinforcing flange 28. These two ears or lugs are spaced apart toreceive a lever 43 such as commonly used in connection with a copyholderto raise and lower the copy supporting part 44 thereof, and this lever43 may, consequently, be connected with the lugs 42 by means of a pivotpin or bolt 46. By means of this construction, the copyholder lever,being mounted on a removable bracket member which in turn is secured tothe copyholder, will remain in correct relation to the copyholder whenthe same is removed from the desk platform.

The brackets described have the advantage that they rigidly support thecopyholder on the plat-' form of the desk, and furthermore, support thesame beyond the outer edge of the platform so as to leave ample room onthe platform for the typeegaogasv writer or other machine. The 'fixedbracket parts :are ofsuch sizeas not to-interferewith the'movement ofthe platform 9 with the machine mounted thereon'into the desk pedestal.

It'will'be understood that various changes in theldetails, materials-andarrangements of parts which have been herein described and illustratedin order to explain the nature of the invention, may-be made by thoseskilled in the art within theprinciple and scope of the invention, as expressed in the appended claims.

I claim'as my invention:

1. A bracket for removably supporting a copyholder on a desk platform,said bracket including a base member secured to thedesk platform,alsecond member havinga portion to which a copyholder may be secured andanother portion which may be releasably secured to saidbase member, atruss member arranged in a substantially vertical plane and having itsends secured to saidtwo portions of said second member to preventbending of the same due to theweight of said copyholder, and a quicklyreleasable connection between said second member of said bracket andsaid base member to permit said copyholder together with said secondmember to be quickly mounted on and disconnected from said base member.

2. A bracket for removably supporting a copyholder on a desk platform,said bracket including a base member secured to the desk platform andhaving a supporting flange spaced from said platform, a second memberhaving a portion to which a copyholder may be secured and anotherportion which may be releasably secured to said base member, a trussmember connecting said two portions of said second member to preventbending of said second member in one direction, and a reinforcing memberextending transversely of said truss member and formed integral withsaid second member to prevent bending of said member inanotherdirection, and a quickly releasable connection between said secondmember and said base member.

3. A bracket according to claim 2, in which said reinforcing member isof inverted U-shape in cross section and extends upwardly above saidcopyholder supporting portion of said second member.

4. A bracket according to claim 2, in which said reinforcing member isof inverted U-shape and extends upwardly from and connects said twoportions of said second member and in which said truss member straddlessaid reinforcing member.

5. In a bracket for removably supporting a copyholder on the platform ofa desk having a pedestal which may be closed by a door, that improvementin which the supporting bracket includes a base member secured to saidplatform and having a supporting flange spaced above said platform whenthe same is in substantially horizontal position, a second member havinga portion to which a copyholder may be secured and another portion whichmay be releasably secured to said supporting flange of said base member,said second member having an inter mediate portion which is bent intoinverted U- shape and which connects said first mentioned two portionsof said second member, said U- shaped portion being formed to straddlthe upper portion of said door when the same is in open position, and aquickly releasable connection between the second member of said bracketand said flange of said base member to permit removaliof "saidcopyholder and said .second mer'ib ber from said base member anddeskplatform. .6. In a bracket for removably supporting/ta copyholder onthe-platform of a deskshavingxa pedestalwhich may be closed bya=d0or,ith at improvement in which the supporting bracket includes abase member secured tosaid platform and having a supporting flange"spaced above said platform when thesame is in. substan-.- tiallyhorizontal position, a second memberhav inga portion to which acopyholder may be secured and another portion which may be releasablysecured to said supporting flange of said base member, said secondmember having-an intermediate portion which is bent into invertedU-shape and which connects said first mentioned two portions of saidsecond member, said U-.- shaped portion being formed to straddle theupper portion of said door when in open. position, a truss member whichstraddles :"said U-shaped part of said second member and which has oneend thereof secured to said portionvof said second member to which said.copyholder is secured and which has the other end thereof secured tosaid portion of said second member which is releasably secured to saidbase member, and a quickly releasable connection between the secondmember of said bracket and said flange of said base member to perm-itremoval of said copyholder and said second member from said base memberand desk platform.

'7. A bracket forreleasably supporting 0115a. desk platform a copyholderhaving a lever-for vertical adjustment of a part thereof, said bracketincluding a base member rigidly. secured. toathe desk platform and asecond member'havingea connection between said other portion of saidsecond member and said base member.

8. A pair of brackets for releasably supporting on a desk platformopposite ends of the lower por tion of a copyholder having a lever forvertical adjustment of a part thereof, each of said brackets including abase member rigidly secured to the desk platform and a second memberhaving a portion to which a copyholder may be rigidly secured andanother portion which may be releasably secured to said base member, anupwardly extending reinforcing part on said second member to resistflexing of the same due to the weight of said copyholder, thereinforcing part of said second member of one of said brackets having apair of upwardly extending parts thereon spaced from each other andhaving an aperture extending through the same, a pivot pinextendingthrough said apertures and through said lever forpermittingsaid lever to swing to actuate said adjustable part of said copyholder,and quickly detachable connections between said second member of eachbracket and the base member thereof to permit quick removal andreplacement of said copyholder, said second members and said lever as aunit from said base members of said brackets.

9. A bracket for removably supporting a copy-- holder beyond an edge ofa desk platform, said bracket including a base member secured to saiddesk platform, a second member having a} portion formed to be removablysecured to said base'r'nemher and another portion extending beyond saidedge of said desk platform and to which a copyholder may be secured, areinforcing portion extending in a direction substantially parallel tothe adjacent edge of said platform and formed integral with said secondmember by bending a portion of said second member in a directionsubstantially perpendicular to the portion of said second member towhich said copyholder is secured, and a truss member extending in adirection transversely of said reinforcing member and having portionsthereof rigidly secured to said portion of said second member on whichthe copyholder is supported and to the portion of said second memberwhich is secured to said base member. 10. A bracket for removablysupporting a copyholder beyond an edge of a desk platform, said bracketincluding a base member secured to said desk platform and having asubstantially horizontal supporting flange spaced from said platform, asecond member having a substantially horizontal portion formed to seaton said supporting flange, and another substantially horizontal portionextending beyond said edge of said desk platform and to which acopyholder may be secured, an upright flange formed integral with saidfirst mentioned portion of said second member, said second member havingan integral reinforcing part of substantially inverted U-shape arrangedbetween said portions thereof and formed integral with said secondmember by bending the same, said U-shaped part extending substantiallyparallel to said edge of said platform, and a substantially uprighttruss member extending crosswise of said U-shaped reinforcing part andhaving the end portions thereof rigidly secured to said horizontalportions of said second member.

11. A bracket for releasably supporting on a desk platform a copyholderhaving a lever for tween said portions thereof and formed integral withsaid second member by bending the same, said U-shaped part extendingsubstantially parallel to said edge of said platform, and asubstantially upright truss member extending crosswise of said U-shapedreinforcing part and havingthe end portions thereof rigidly secured tosaid horizontal portions of said second member, said flange having anupward extension formed integral therewith and on which said lever ispivoted. to permit said lever to be swung to actuate said adjustablepart of said copyholder.

FLOYD H. BLOOMSTRAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,400,007 Sparks Dec. 13, 19211,809,096 Wolf June 9, 1931 1,818,814 Riggs et a1. Aug. 11,19311,920,520 Nord Aug. 1, 1933 1,989,601 Mucher Jan. 29, 1935 2,269,947Ludwig Jan. 13, 1942 2,452,116 Felton Oct. 26, 1948

